The New Carol
by tryintobecool27
Summary: Carol sees herself as a burden. Oh how time changes things! But how did she go from the old Carol, to the new Carol? I'm rating this M for possible language. Maybe some stuff and thangs. Not a lovey dovey sexy read though.
1. Chapter 1

AN: So my first one, Woohoo! I have read so many fantasical stories. I swear I love them all. The problem is that I am not a super creative person. I am however a control freak. My obsession with Carol kicking ass is never quite satisfied, hence the need to just give in and try to write it. So if I have inadvertently used someones ideas, I am truly sorry. I admire so many authors and honestly cannot keep track of what I have read, and what my puny little brain has concocted. Either way I hope you all enjoy as I try to satisfy my "Carol is the ultimate bad ass" addiction.

 _ **It all happened so fast...**_

We were not prepared. Maybe we had gotten too comfortable. Maybe we were distracted by all the drama surrounding us. I'll never know how it started, but I will never forget the events that followed.

The farm had felt like a sanctuary. Peaceful. Sophia's death hurt. Oh god it hurt so bad. But this was the new reality. Somewhere deep inside I had hoped. Against all odds I had hoped that she had found someway to survive. That wasn't meant to be I guess. The others had so much going on that I didn't understand. There were definite signs that things in this group were fractured. I guess I didn't realize the severity of it all until Shane was dead. I suppose he had gone a little crazy, but then again, hadn't we all?

Maybe Rick was really the one who had gone crazy. The truth about what transpired between the two that evening will never be known. I have my suspicions but I don't know for sure who was right, or wrong. Regardless, that is there story, not mine.

" _ **What was that?"**_

A shot rang out through the night. Randall had escaped. Daryl, Rick, Shane and Glen had gone out to search for him. Had Randall found a gun? Was everyone alright? Carol could not help but to worry about the guys. She had come to care for them, each in different ways, but all were important to her.

Maybe if she were honest with herself, she would admit that she was most worried about Daryl. Unable to pinpoint _when_ it happened, but something definitely _did_ happen. When she first met the Dixon brothers she was afraid of them. Something about them was dangerous. Merle was loud and disrespectful, Daryl quiet and withdrawn. The Dixon's were meant for this world. They knew how to take care of themselves.

Surprisingly though, Carol began to notice how much they took care of the rest of the group as well. Despite Lori's judgmental attitude and Andrea's open disgust for poor white trash, they still provided food for the group. They were watchful, protectors. They did it without expectation of gratitude. It was just their way.

When Merle disappeared, Carol noticed how much it had hurt Daryl. He had a wall up for sure, but Carol saw him. Really saw him. He was angry, and torn between staying with the group and going after his brother. The group needed him whether they wanted to admit it or not. He knew this, but making a decision was killing him.

He felt as though he was giving up on Merle. Maybe that's why when Sophia went missing Daryl wouldn't give up on her. Maybe it was his way of redeeming himself for Merle. Maybe it really was because he didn't have anything better to do. Carol didn't care. She was so grateful to him no matter what his motive was. He kept her hope alive. And when all hope was truly gone, he brought peace to her. Peace was a hard thing to come by these days. I guess that is why the farm had seemed like such a godsend. They had found a rhythm there. A new way of life. No one thought it would end the way it did.

" _ **I cant find Carl!"**_

Of course. Carol was not shocked that Carl had disappeared. Again. And of course it was at the worst time possible. Everyone was on the front porch looking at the biggest herd of walkers they had ever seen. And Carl was missing. Carol's mind was frantically thinking of what they should do. Where were the guys? Where the hell was Carl? What were they going to do? It was like a fox had gotten into the hen house. People were running around aimlessly, people were missing. It was complete chaos. Carol was on auto pilot at that point. She was more scared than she had ever been before in her life. She was handed a gun and told to run outside to the cars so that is what she did. She ran. Blind with panic she didn't even notice that walkers surrounded her until Andrea had started screaming at her. Gunshots were going off all around. It was too much, to unreal. She was shooting at anything she could. Walkers were dropping left and right. Holy shit, Carol was killing Walkers! Her adrenaline was so high it was like she didn't even posses her own body.

As she spun around she locked eyes with Andrea. Carol saw, but couldn't seem to process the fact that Andrea had a blood gushing from her neck and arms. Blood was everywhere whilst walkers were feasting on her friend. Carol's mind was pleading with her body to move. To just do something, _anything_! Andrea was screaming at her to run. Somehow carol was able to snap out of it enough to run. She still couldn't accept what was happening, but holy hell she could run.

" _ **Rick!"**_

Carol spotted Rick and Carl then sprinted as quickly as she could towards them, feeling a huge sense of relief the closer she got. She felt like now that she had found Rick, things would be okay. He would save her. Rick was their leader. He would take care of her. "Oh god, you're alive!" Carol said. "What about the others? Where is Daryl?".

Carl was the one who replied. "We don't know where Daryl and Glenn went, but Randall is dead. And so is Shane." Carol did a double take on Carl. Did he just say Shane was Dead? What in the world had happened? Rick grabbed Carol by the shoulders, forcefully shaking them. "Where's Lori." he yelled. "Carol, did you see Lori?!" Of course he would be looking for Lori. Carol Just couldn't seem to think straight, let alone respond. "DAD!" She heard Carl scream. Carol all of a sudden felt her body thrust through the air, landing in front of Carl. Right into a walker. This couldn't be happening. She struggled against the walker as they tumbled to the ground. pushing and shoving against the rotting body that was on top of her, she somehow managed to shimmy up enough to get her leg bent up into her chest. She kicked it down as hard as she could, smashing her foot right into the walkers head. Standing had seemed impossible but she made it to her feet and continued to stomp on the walkers putrid face. She couldn't stop stomping and kicking until the things whole head popped like a watermelon, spraying blood and chunks everywhere.

This was a dream. No, not a dream, a nightmare. There was no way this was really happening. As she looked around, she saw car tail lights headed away from her, she saw burning barns, she saw walkers. She was left behind, alone. All she could do was keep running.


	2. Chapter 2

Sunrise was coming and Carol was still running. It felt like she had been running for days. What else could she do? Exhaustion was setting in hard. At this point, Carol's leg were moving of their own volition. She could not feel them, let alone command them to move. It was getting harder and harder to get up every time she crumbled to the ground. How long could she keep going? Finally her legs gave out completely. She could hear the dead moaning of walkers behind her but she just couldn't make herself get up. She could barley move. Even crawling was not an option at this point. It was the end. She just knew it. She had given it everything she had. More that she ever thought was possible. There was just absolutely nothing left to give. No more fight. The howl that roared out of her chest was like no other. It was straight from her soul. She rolled onto her back and let the tears come. It was acceptance. It was over. She felt the calm wash over her as she closed her eyes and waited for the end.

On the highway, only a few short miles away from where Carol had finally given in, other members of the group were meeting up. Relief and joy were prevalent as one person after another, after another pulled up at the unknowingly set meeting place.

Carl had been overwhelmed at the thought of losing so many. He was always so angry at his mom, but the thought of losing her made him nauseous. When he saw a blue truck pulling up his heart just about flew out of his little chest. T Dog, Beth and Lori were in the front! Lori had flung the door open and thrown herself out of the truck, racing towards Carl. He ran to her as fast as his legs wold take him, colliding in to her arms for the tightest hug of his life. Thank god she had made it! He hadn't thought he could make it in this world without her. Rick just wasn't who Carl though he was. He had witnessed Rick shoot Shane, who was Rick's "Best Friend", and then within 24 hours do the unforgivable to a woman whom Carl had thought of as a second mother. He had already lost his best friend Sophia, and in Carl's mind it was still debatable whether that was Rick's fault as well. What else was Rick capable of? Carl realized that he was not even thinking of this man as Dad anymore. Just Rick. His dad had been a good guy. His dad had wanted to help people. Rick wasn't like his dad.

Daryl had been the last to pull up on his roaring triumph. As he hopped off the motorcycle he scanned the group, taking inventory of who had made it. Walking up to Rick he gave him a quick man hug, just bumping shoulders.

"Where's Carol?" he asked Rick quietly.

Rick pulled Daryl away from the group a bit."She didn't make it. A walker got her." Carl watched Rick as he straight faced lied to Daryl. It wasn't really a lie but it certainly was not the truth. It disgusted Carl that Rick's face seemed so full of sympathy and concern. He saw Daryl nod and walk away. He looked so defeated. So Broken. Even at Carl's young age he knew how much Daryl cared about Carol. He had actually seen her make him smile once or twice. Carl hadn't know is was possible for that man to smile. Carol made everyone smile though. She was the only one in the group that listened to Carl. She acted more like a mom than Lori did most days. Guilt was creeping up on him. Remembering back to earlier on the farm, he hadn't believed his eyes as he watched Rick grab Carol and throw her at the walker that had almost gotten him. If he had been paying attention, he would have seen the walker and gotten away, and Carol wouldn't be dead because of him. The guilt was almost overwhelming. Carl was so ashamed that Carol died so he could live. He hated Rick.

* * *

 _Several months later_

"Help!"

Carol and Michonne started running down the street towards the sound. They saw a young girl, maybe around 20, running from a small group of walkers. After a very quick scan they charged at the walkers. Carol had 2 knives in walker skulls before the girl saw her. Within minutes, Carol and Michonne had eliminated the group of geeks. The girl had fallen to her knees watching with wide eyes as Carol knelt down next to her. Carol reached out to touch her shoulder but the girl flinched and scrambled back on to her butt, scooting away. Carol starting speaking in a soft voice saying "Honey, we're not here to hurt you. Can you tell us your name? I'm Carol and this here is Michonne." Carol stood and backed up a couple of steps waiting patiently for the girl to say something, or maybe run away. In a quiet shaky voice, the girl finally spoke. "I'm, uhh... I'm Mandy." Mandy suddenly burst into tears. Michonne rolled her eyes and whispered to Carol "Figures. We save her and she cries. No saying thank you, just fricking crying."

"Hush up Michonne!" said Carol as she shot a disapproving glare towards her friend. She took a couple tentative steps towards Mandy Crouching down again to be eye level. Mandy reached out to Carol and found herself gathered in her arms. "Every thing is gonna be alright, okay sweetie. We need to stand up and get outta the street okay? Let's get you somewhere safe. Are you with a group or are you alone?"

"There is no way this crybaby made it alone Carol. Keep you eyes open for a trap."

This time Carol rolled her eyes at Michonne. "Can you at least pretend to be nice for a minute Mich? Holy crap. It's like you were never hugged as a child. Do you need to be hugged?" Carol felt Michonne's boot connect with her ass. It was probably deserved.

Mandy couldn't believe it. One minute she was surrounded by walkers. The next minute these 2 samurai ninjas chicks were running at her as if the devil were after them. More like they were after the devil. They looked like fearless warriors. Like a well choreographed dance they spun and stabbed and sliced at walkers, taking down one after another. There had probably been 25 geeks and they sliced them like butter. Mandy had never seen anything like it. Out of nowhere the tears came. How embarrassing that she was bawling like this. She heard the one named Michonne making fun of her but Carol was sweet.

She felt calmer being held by Carol. It had reminded her of when she was a little girl and had nightmares. Her mother would hold her and stroke her hair until she fell asleep again. Mandy didn't think Carol would like being compared to her mother.

"Are you guys for real?" asked Mandy, her voice a little steadier, a little braver. She heard Michonne snort and mumble "Great, she's a delusional crybaby." but Carol just reached over and jabbed Michonne in the ribs, hard. Michonne let out a loud grunt while Carol gave Mandy a curious smile. "What do you mean honey, of course we are real."

Mandy wasn't sure how to say all that she was thinking so she simply asked "Where did you learn to fight like that?"

* * *

 _W_ _here di_ _d_ _you learn to fight like that?_ Carol knew exactly haw this girl was feeling. She remembered back to the day after the farm had been overrun. It had been many months ago when she had said the exact same thing to Michonne.

Carol had just closed her eyes. It was over. She was done. Ready to be taken by the walkers, ready to join Sophia in whatever afterlife there was. It never happened. When Carol finally realized that no walker had bitten her, that she was still alive, she opened her eyes to the most amazing yet terrifying sight. A hooded woman was wielding a sword around, left and right, spinning and slicing like she was the ancient goddess of war. When she had killed all walkers in sight, she came to stand above carol with her hand held out to help her up. Carol remembered being so in awe of this warrior queen. All carol could do was whisper "How did you lean to fight like that?".

Michonne had been her traveling companion ever since. She taught Carol how to fight. Not just fight, but dance the walkers to their death. They practiced day in and day out until Carol's skill and confidence matched Michonne's. Carol was never quite as good as Michonne with a katana sword. She was a pretty good shot with guns but the were very loud, and ammo was hard to come by. They had been looking through store after store for weapons that Carol could use but everything had been picked through and cleaned out. After week of searching they had come across a historical museum and figured why the hell not? That is where Carol found her weapon of choice. A stack of sleek steel throwing knives, and her favorite knife called a k'pinga. The K'pinga is an african throwing knife. It kinda looked like a multi bladed mini grim reaper knife. It didn't matter how strange it looked. Carol loved it. It felt so right using it, like it was an extension of her body as opposed to just a tool. Carol found that although she was a decent shot, Her knife throwing skills were spectacular. She practiced for months, throwing with her right hand and left. I took a bit of finesse to use the K'pinga. Carol had to learn how to move her wrist without cutting herself with the blades. Michonne made fun of her constantly for having to bandage herself up. "You don't have to look like an ancient mummy just because you use an ancient knife" Michonne couldn't stop laughing at her stupid joke. Michonne stopped laughing when she watched as Carol completely obliterated 3 walkers within seconds using just the K'pinga. Carol had named the K' pinga 'Pookie', but Michonne still never dared to laughed about it. In Carol's hands, that was one bad ass knife. The best part was it never ran out of bullets. Carol had always thought Daryl was so smart for using a crossbow, but her Pookie and throwing knives were far superior in her opinion.

Carol had thought about how much she had changed since the farm. In a way she was grateful to Rick. Rick thought she was weak. He had thrown her at a walker to save his son. She had tried to understand. Maybe she would have done the same if it had been Sophia. Most likely not but you never know what you are capable when it comes to your children. But regardless, he had been willing to toss her to her death . One time she had overheard Rick and Shane talking about her back at the quarry. Shane had said she was a waste, a burden. Just another sheep to take care of. Carol had tried to contribute. She cooked, she did laundry, she was always taking care of Carl. Lord knows no one else did. Weak was exactly what she was though. She never wanted to be weak again. Maybe if she had been strong, Sophia would be alive. Instead of waiting for Rick to save her, she could have done it herself. She could have taught Sophia to be strong, but instead she was scared. Always looking to someone else to help protect her. Daryl never said it but he probably thought she was a burden as well. He probably only hung around her because he felt obligated to keep her safe. Well never again. Carol then was not carol now. Carol could take down a walker like it was nothing. She could run for hours and not get winded. Lord knows how she had survived the farm but she did. And now she knew how to survive in this world. It was truly the best feeling in the world. Almost.

Michonne had been such a blessing. It had taken about a month before Carol knew anything but a name, but eventually hey became true friends. Not friends like Lori and Andrea had been. They had pitied Carol. They were above Carol and even though they were nice enough, Carol knew it too. Carol valued Michonne. She trusted her with her life. Michonne had no pity for Carol, only understanding. They respected each other. And damn did they have a good time. Michonne had a bitter sense of humor, but the girl had timing. Usually bad timing but it was funny just the same. Laughter was rare back with the group from the farm. It was almost an hourly occurrence with Michonne. Danger was still just around the corner at all times, but what was the point of fighting if fighting was all there was? How strange that the end of the world came and Carol was having more fun than she had ever had before.

So now their duo becomes a trio. Carol can't help but wonder if Mandy can do what she herself had done. Will she want to learn? In this world you either learn how to fight and hunt to become a survivor, or you become a walker. What would Mandy choose?

It seems Mandy would become a talker.


End file.
